The official name of the Fire Company in Bird-in-Hand is the Hand-in-Hand Fire Company No.1, Station 4-1. It is one of four all volunteer fire companies in East Lampeter Township: Hand-in-Hand, Lafayette, Witmer, and Ronks. The Emergency Services Committee of East Lampeter Township is made up of a delegate and an alternate from each fire company. Each fire company also has a citizen representative. In addition, the Township’s Supervisor and an alternate and two citizen representatives are on the Committee. The Township Manager is an ex officio member.

Hand-in-Hand’s territory encompasses Kauffman’s Fruit Farm to the east and extends to half of the village of Smoketown on the west, along with the Lapridge and Willow Acres Developments, which gives them primary responsibility for 775 homes and 107 businesses in a 10-square-mile area. There are 46 farms within their first-due. In a wider regional area, it is one of nine companies in Zone 4, which extends from Route 30 north to Route 340, west to Witmer and east to the Chester County line.

For over 100 years this Fire Company has been protecting the Bird-in-Hand community and surrounding areas by responding to emergencies. These include residential, industrial, and barn fires as well as vehicle accidents and floods. They provide traffic control, answer automatic fire alarms, and educate families about fire protection and safety issues. The Company is also one of only a few confined space rescue teams in Lancaster County performing rescues in silos, tanks, underground vaults, and pits.

We are compassionate volunteers trained to serve our community by preventing and resolving emergencies within our capabilities. We draw on the character and convictions of all who are willing to serve, using the resources provided by our community while always promoting an atmosphere that encourages our citizens to help their neighbors.

BIHFC Vision StatementApproved by General Membership 9/2010

To continue our mission into the future, we will instill our core values of trust, stability, and integrity into the organization. We will also:

Invite people to participate in all aspects of the organization and provide a structure for them to use their individual talents, skills, and abilities to the betterment of our organization and the community.

Maintain an environment that invites people to express their ideas.

Promote an open forum to ensure innovation and new ideas, and to understand technology and adopt it when justified.

Identify and prepare for changes well ahead of when they will occur.

Operate the company using responsible financial management that provides resources for responders today and into the future.